June 9, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 106 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
JUSTICE IN POLICING ACT AND HEROES ACT; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 106
(Senate - June 09, 2020)
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[Pages S2771-S2772] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] JUSTICE IN POLICING ACT AND HEROES ACT Mr. SCHUMER. Madam President, as protests over the death of George Floyd continue, House and Senate Democrats came together yesterday to unveil sweeping reforms to our Nation's police departments. The Justice in Policing Act was not only a response to the recent protests but a reflection of years of failed efforts to root out injustice and racial bias in our law enforcement. The bill would ban the use of choke holds and other tactics that have left Black Americans dead. It would limit the transfer of military weaponry and equipment to police departments. It would change the legal standard to make it easier to hold police accountable for misconduct when they use [[Page S2772]] deadly force on American citizens, and through increased data and transparency, as well as important modifications to training and practices, it would help prevent police misconduct in the first place. This is a very strong bill, and rightly so. I give tremendous credit to Senators Booker, Harris, and so many others who contributed, as well as the Black Caucus, led by Karen Bass and Chairman Nadler of the Judiciary. They put together a very strong bill. The reason is simple. The moment does not call for half measures. Hundreds of thousands of American protesters are not asking us to chip away around the edges. They want bold reform and meaningful changes to assist them in something that all too often delivers unequal justice for too many Black Americans, and that has existed that way for too, too long. Well, that kind of bold reform and meaningful change is what the Justice in Policing Act will deliver--meaningful change. Democrats are going to fight very, very hard to make this proposal a reality. Now, of course, in the Senate, it is ultimately up to Leader McConnell to decide what proposals, if any, come to the Senate floor. That is his prerogative as majority leader. But for 2 weeks, Leader McConnell has refused to respond to my requests for the Senate to consider a police reform bill before July 4, the end of the current work period. I have heard the Republican leader speak to the frustrations that have swept the Nation. I trust he is aware of the many abuses that have been allowed to persist unchecked in our police departments. Where is Leader McConnell on actually doing something about it? Of course, there is another crisis at the moment, the COVID pandemic. According to reports in the press, Leader McConnell has told the Republican caucus not to expect another relief bill until late July at the earliest. This is happening even as some States begin loosening restrictions on business and travel. But even as that happens, our economy is hampered by severe Depression-level unemployment. While the number of new cases is falling on the east coast, the number of cases remains steady in much of the country and is increasing in a good number of States. We are coming to a whole lot of cliffs. States are preparing their budgets in advance of the new fiscal year in July. If they don't get help soon, they may be forced to make severe cuts to public service, and thousands, hundreds of thousands, and even millions will be laid off--hard-working State and local officials whom our communities depend on. There are other cliffs as well. The 3-month moratorium on eviction expires. Unemployment expires July 31. There are so many cliffs here, and make no mistake about it, COVID is related to racial justice as well. In the HEROES bill, for instance, hazard workers and frontline workers get extra pay--hazard pay. More than 40 percent of them are minorities. These are the people on our frontlines. Rental assistance for people who might be evicted, a large percentage of minority folks cannot afford to own a home or rent, so we must act on that as well. So the kind of racial justice we are talking about, the kind of inequality that exists--some of it--a good chunk of it would be relieved if we passed the HEROES Act, COVID 4 bill. Both of these are important to do. Racial justice, civil rights, a global pandemic, and economic disaster--these are not merely issues of the month but of this moment in American history. It is truly a time of historic challenge, and Leader McConnell and the Republican Senate are missing in action. There is no commitment to consider police reform and no urgency to provide our country relief, despite the upcoming cliffs that are going to be soon upon us. Now there is a full 4 weeks remaining before July 4. I say to Leader McConnell: commit to a police reform bill on the Senate floor. Work with us on another emergency package that can come to the floor as well before July 4. We have waited too long already. For weeks, we Democrats have had to relentlessly pressure our Republican colleagues to even hold the most routine oversight hearings. The Republican majority on the Homeland Security Committee, in particular, has wasted time these past few weeks trying to smear the family of the President's political opponent instead. Here we have a major crisis--a major crisis on the health front, on the economic front, on the racial justice front, and what are so many of our Republican friends doing? Raising back already discredited conspiracy theories to go after the President's political opponent at a time when Americans are calling for unity and coming together and doing something about our problems. It is a shame. The Homeland Security Committee will finally, today, conduct a hearing with the FEMA Administrator for the first time in so long. This crisis has been raging for months. More than 8 weeks ago, we passed a $3 trillion bill. Why is it taking so long to have any oversight at all? Finally, members of the committee will have the opportunity to press administration officials as to why, in the early days of the pandemic, the distribution of PPE and other critical medical supplies was marked by so much confusion, secrecy, incompetence, and delays. In fact, Senators Warren, Blumenthal, and I formally requested an investigation into Project Airbridge, the name of the Trump administration's opaque medical supply chain management project, which, by most reports, was a failure. Why aren't we looking into why that went wrong, what went wrong, and how we can correct it? The harsh fact of the matter is this: We have lost too many Americans, frontline workers, and hospital emergency personnel to this horrible COVID-19 disease. We will never know how many we lost because we weren't better prepared with the necessary protective equipment. The Trump administration's failure should be thoroughly investigated so it does not make the same mistake again if there is a resurgence of the disease. Meanwhile, America is still waiting for the President to even acknowledge the issues of police violence and racial justice that are driving protests across the country, including across the street from the White House. The President appears too preoccupied trying to emulate Richard Nixon, of all Presidents, and he doesn't offer even a scintilla of leadership. The President seems too preoccupied with his political precariousness to even try to bring the country together. As former Defense Secretary Mattis wrote, ``Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people--does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us. We are witnessing the consequences of three years of this deliberate effort. We are witnessing the consequences of three years without mature leadership. We can unite without him . . . '' And do that, we must, as Americans. Those words were not written by some liberal Democrat whom they will call names, cast aspersions on, never discussing the argument. It was written by one of our great military leaders, former Defense Secretary General Mattis Every day provides fresh evidence that this country will have to unite in spite of the President, not because of him. I yield the floor. ____________________